Can You Stand The Rain
by BeginAgain46
Summary: Every significant moment she had with him was accompanied by rain. TATE
1. Through the Rain

**Can You Stand the Rain** by **saulalovin**  
A **NCIS** fan fiction

**Pairing:** Tony DiNozzo and Kate Todd  
**Summary:** Every significant moment she had with him was accompanied by rain.  
**Disclaimer:** For the nth time, I do not own _NCIS_ or its characters. Maybe I'll get them for Christmas or something! lol  
**Spoilers:** None.  
**Author's Note:** Just some Tate fluff, inspired by – what else? – the rain. It's been pouring here lately. Kate's still alive, obviously. Please read and review. I lurve reviews. Hee.

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PART ONE – THROUGH THE RAIN

She wasn't blind – she knew he was good-looking, and that plenty of other women would've _killed _to be her in position, working side-by-side with him practically 24/7. She even let herself admit that if he had been someone other than her co-worker who teased and annoyed her mercilessly with his sexual and juvenile remarks, she would've considered going on a date with him.

But he was, so she didn't. And that was that.

Or so she thought.

It was the little things that began to throw her off – how the brush of their fingers felt as they passed files to each other, the tingle that ran up her spine whenever he tossed that knee-weakening grin of his her way, the involuntary blush that rose in her cheeks whenever he made even the _slightest _comment in reference to her…

She refused to admit she had it bad – because she didn't. Not the _slightest_ bit.

_It's just a little crush_, she told herself, over and over again. _That's all there is to it_.

She chose to ignore her feelings. She harbored them deep inside herself, keeping them tucked away and refusing to dredge them out – this sort of thing just wasn't up for discussion.

She couldn't _possibly _have feelings for him – it was just _wrong_. The idea of them being together was laughable… Not to mention that he couldn't possibly be feeling the same way about her.

But it was funny how fate always seemed to have something else in mind. She remembered that day clearly – the day everything changed.

Gibbs had sent the two of them to Norfolk to find out everything they could about a missing petty officer. The investigation proved unnecessary when they found the supposedly missing petty officer at the base, safe and sound. It was late, and Gibbs had allowed them to go home as soon as they got back at the NCIS HQ.

It had been raining that day. Gray clouds filled the sky, blocking out any chance of the sun peeking out. The air was chilly, and sullen drops of rain just kept coming.

It was just her luck that her car was in the shop for a couple of days and she had to hitch a ride with one of her co-workers to and from the headquarters. Mostly, she stuck with Abby or Gibbs – McGee drove a little too slowly for her taste, and you only rode with Tony if you wanted to feel like you were on some cheap roller coaster in a carnival or if you had a death wish. The only downside to driving with Abby was her choice of music, blaring out through the car speakers at the highest possible volume, and as for Gibbs… Well, it was _Gibbs_. Plus, he had the tendency to stay at the headquarters past midnight and get there the following morning before nine.

She kind of needed her beauty sleep, you know? Especially considering she hadn't had a full night's sleep in nearly two weeks – case after case had kept on coming, and the paperwork had seemingly begun to self-multiply, creating a lovely little mountain on her desk.

The rain didn't really help, either – she felt thoroughly soaked, down to the very bone, practically. And, as DiNozzo put it, she had been in one of her _moods_ lately.

Right now, she just wanted to go home and curl up in front of the fire with a mug of steaming tea – chamomile, maybe, or mint – and a good book, a blanket at her feet.

Only problem was… Who would get her there?

Gibbs was keeping Abby at the lab late because of some new case that had turned up – they'd be there _forever_. And being the kind of boss he was, Gibbs had McGee poring through stacks and stacks of paperwork – he'd be there forever, too. So that left…

"Tony, would you mind giving me a ride home?" she asked, fingering her coat nervously, praying with all her might that he wouldn't spout another teasing remark or movie reference – she just did not have it in her to think of a snappy comeback.

A whack on the arm would just have to suffice for now.

Luckily, he agreed without any further incident (she was slightly put out by the fact that she didn't have an excuse to hit him; any contact with him thrilled her nowadays – she felt very much like a lovesick teenager, and because of that, she was thoroughly disgusted with herself), and she followed him down to the parking lot, silently thanking God because things seemed to be going her way, _finally_.

They rode in comfortable silence, the radio playing softly in the background, slightly drowned out by the rain pounding outside.

She had allowed herself to close her eyes for just a second (she didn't dare fall asleep with DiNozzo at the wheel, although he was driving considerably better than usual as he navigated through the rain-slick streets), but she guessed she was more tired than she'd thought, because the next thing she knew, he was parked outside her house and was shaking her awake.

Bleary-eyed with sleep, she mumbled her thanks and was about to climb out the door when he rested a hand on her arm to stop her from getting out.

"I'll walk you to your door," he told her, grabbing an umbrella from the backseat. He climbed out and jogged over to her side, gallantly opening the door for her and helping her out of the car.

She fumbled with her house keys for a while before dropping them clumsily on the floor. She bent down to pick them up and slipped on a puddle of water. With the quick reflexes of his athletic training, he grabbed at her arm and managed not to pitch forward himself as he got a firm grip on her wrist.

It was only at that moment when both of them realized how dangerously close their faces were. She swallowed hard, fully awake now. She had never really had him in such close proximity before. Either of them could lean forward just a _little_ and press his or her lips on the other's.

_He has beautiful eyes_, she thought to herself numbly, losing herself in them. Her eyes traveled down to his lips, and her heart began to slam hard into her ribcage. _He has strong lips, too. I wonder how they would feel on mine…_

Heat began to rise in her cheeks as images bombarded her brain – images she should've never thought of. But before she could berate herself, those strong lips were on hers, lightly nipping at her own. Slowly, she began to kiss him back, just as he was kissing her – light, exploratory, almost shy kisses. The umbrella had long dropped to the ground, and his hands gently eased her up until she was in the regular standing position, not once breaking the contact of their lips.

When they broke apart, sucking in air urgently, she was seeing a whole different side to the person she had thought she knew. Her heart continued to beat wildly – she was heading into uncharted territory, and the thought excited her, yet petrified her at the same time. He seemed to be looking at her with a question in his eyes, and after a moment's brief hesitation, she smiled slowly and unlocked the front door, pushing it open and allowing him entrance.

He had lit a fire, and she made tea. A big old afghan, the result of her mother's one and only knitting frenzy, was draped at their feet, and they lay on the couch, their arms wrapped around each other, providing each other with additional warmth. The rain still pitter-pattered away above them, but in his arms, she felt safe – loved, even.

And, as she allowed a small smile to form across her face, she thought that that was all she really wanted.

That was the last she remembered before falling asleep, feeling – for the first time in a long while – content.

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TBC... Now click that awesome little button down there.


	2. Raindrops Will Fall

PART TWO – RAINDROPS WILL FALL

She had thought that they hid their relationship pretty well – no PDA at work (which suited her just fine; she was never a big fan of it to begin with), they never arrived or left together, they kept the glancing at each other to a minimum…

She had a feeling the others knew, though. McGee had an annoyingly smug look on his face whenever he saw the two of them doing as so much as _conversing_ with each other about work. The other day, she had seen Gibbs pull out his wallet, and with a huge sigh, present a crisp fifty-dollar bill to Abby, who was grinning like a Cheshire cat.

It was a little unnerving, seeing your boss and co-workers bet on when the two of you would finally hook up.

If the others at NCIS had any doubts about the existence of their relationship, they were finally convinced the day it got pulled out into the open for all to see.

Incidentally, it had been raining that day, a slow, lazy drizzle. They were out on another case, and the two of them had entered a seemingly empty, abandoned warehouse adjacent to the crime scene, hoping that they would find the murder weapon inside.

Instead, they had found the man they suspected of murdering the commander. He had jumped out from behind a stack of boxes, grabbed Kate, and kept his gun pointed to her head, warning Tony to lower his gun and back off – otherwise, he'd shoot her.

She shot him a look that plainly read, "Get out of here. _Now_."

He was torn. "I can't just _leave _you here," his eyes told her, the expression on his face anguished.

The man smirked wickedly. "The two of you are together, aren't you?"

Other than having a gun trained on her head, this was another thing that sent shockwaves through her – were they _that _obvious? A complete _stranger_ could tell that they cared a lot for each other, more than one would care for a partner or co-agent.

Tony swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing in his throat, holding his gun steady, his mind racing as he kept his eyes on Kate. What the _hell _was he going to do?

"Get the hell out, DiNozzo!" she finally snapped, her eyes flashing. "I can take him."

The man looked at her, blatant lust dancing in his eyes as he licked his lips slowly. "Feisty. I like that in a woman."

He gritted his teeth and cocked his gun. "I'm warning you, you son of a bitch…"

His finger tightened around the trigger. "I'd be careful if I were you, or your little _girlfriend_ here wouldn't live to see another second."

Tony's cheeks heated with fury. He wanted to shoot the bastard dead, but he couldn't take the chance that Kate would get hit as well. He couldn't risk putting her in any further danger.

"Hey, buddy. You're completely surrounded, you know," he said conversationally, lying his $$ off. To be honest, he had no idea where Gibbs was. As far as he knew, no one had known that he and Kate had entered here. Keeping his voice steady, he continued. "You may as well give up. We'll even go a little easier on you."

He sneered in reply, showing off yellowed teeth. "Bullshit. They barge in here, she dies."

With that, Tony snapped and recklessly lunged at the man. He knocked the gun out of his hands and pushed Kate out of the way before throwing as many punches as he could at him, his blood boiling.

"Tony, stop it!" Kate screamed, pulling handcuffs out of her pocket and trying unsuccessfully to restrain him. "That's _enough_!"

A few seconds later, he moved away, chest heaving. The look on his face terrified Kate – it was pure hatred and fury, something she had never thought easygoing Tony DiNozzo was capable of feeling. He grabbed the handcuffs from her roughly and placed them over his wrists.

"You are in deep shit," he told him smugly, giving a satisfied smirk at the click of the handcuffs as they closed. He pulled out his cell phone. "Gibbs? Yeah, we need back up. We have a suspect in custody."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A sharp whack to the head shook him out of the stupor he was in.

"Ow!" he whined, reaching up as if to assess the damage done. "What was that for?"

Gibbs looked down at him. "You know, DiNozzo, I usually don't need a reason to hit you. But this time you just asked for it."

There was a pause, and Tony looked back at him, waiting for him to continue with his lecture.

Not that Gibbs was the lecturing type, of course. The moment just called for it.

"I'm not going to say anything else, DiNozzo. I think someone else can do a better job for me," he said, nodding to someone behind Tony.

He turned and saw Kate there.

"Let's go up to the roof," she told him shortly. "Less people will be able to overhear."

Without waiting for a reply, she headed to the elevator, and he had no choice but to follow her.

Once they were up, the tension emanating from Kate was extremely palpable. Her mouth was in a straight line, and her eyes were flashing dangerously.

He opened his mouth to speak, but she beat him to it, taking quick steps towards him until they as close as can be. She poked a finger in his chest, and he felt a strange rush of déjà vu, thinking back to the days when they used to bicker and fight like there was no tomorrow.

"What the _hell _were you thinking? You could've been _killed_! You weren't following protocol at _all_. What possessed you to do something so _stupid_? You could've just gotten out and called for back up, but you had to stay in there and play the _hero_. Well, let me tell you something – I don't _need _your protection, DiNozzo. I can take care of myself _just_ _fine_. I mean, wasn't I in the Secret Service?" She blew a strand of hair from her face exasperatedly and looked at him crossly. "Well? Do you have anything to say for yourself?"

He had been listening to all of this quietly, and now, all the emotions he had felt throughout the day caught up with him. "You think it was _fun_, seeing you with a gun pointed to your head, knowing I couldn't do anything about it? I was scared _shitless_, Kate. I couldn't just _leave_ you with that son of a bitch! God knows what he would've _done _to you. And what is this about not needing to be protected? Bull, Kate! We're partners – we're _supposed_ to have each other's back. And tell me something – why do you insist on putting up that tough mask you use with others when you're with _me_? Why won't you let me see you vulnerable, _without _the mask, _without _the walls?" He reached out and grabbed her hands. "Dammit, Kate, if you haven't noticed, I _love _you. You don't need to – "

He stopped, and his eyes widened, mimicking her own, as they both realized what had come out of this mouth.

"W-what?" she asked, her heart beginning to pound hard in her chest, much like earlier when she had had a gun held against her head. "What did you say?"

He looked surprised, but the surprise was soon replaced by a look of tenderness as he reached out and cupped her face in his hands. "I _love_ you, Kate," he repeated, smiling softly down at her.

"I love you too," she choked out as she struggled to hold her tears back, a smile spreading across her face as he leaned down and captured her lips with his. She kissed him back eagerly, all the pain and anger and anxiety brought on during the day disappearing as she melted in his embrace.

As if on cue, a light drizzle of rain began, and they pulled away, laughing.

She rested her forehead on his, smiling slightly as she caressed his cheek lovingly, wiping at the droplets of water that had landed there.

"You know, we have to talk about what happened today," she whispered. "I mean, we can't have any more repeats of what happened today. We might not be as lucky next time."

"Work is work," he agreed. "We're keeping this relationship out of the office, out of cases… As much as possible, we shouldn't let our emotions get the better of us. Okay?"

"Okay." She nuzzled his neck, her arms around him. "So, how was work today, Tony?"

He grinned and pressed a kiss into her hair.

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How much do I love those who reviewed? Oh, so much! You guys rock. Keep 'em coming! 


	3. Don't Rain on My Parade

PART THREE – DON'T RAIN ON MY PARADE

She found him at the park, sitting on a park bench and staring off into space. A relieved look crossed her face, and she pursed her lips together before sticking her hands in her coat pockets and taking the seat next to him.

Soon enough, she found herself staring into the waters of the pond in front of them, lost in thought.

It had worried her greatly when he had run off all of a sudden in the middle of the case they were working on. He hadn't told Gibbs, McGee or her _anything_ – he had just taken off all of a sudden after interviewing PO2 Julian Bradford's fiancée a couple of hours after finding his bruised and bloodied corpse tossed carelessly into a ditch. When she had told Gibbs that Tony had left abruptly, his eyes had narrowed, but not in anger like she had originally thought – it was, in fact, understanding.

She had puzzled over it earlier, but she had no choice but to stay focused on her work. The urge to go look for him had nearly overpowered her, but she had forced herself to stay and work the case in an almost mechanical manner – like she wasn't really _there _at all.

She didn't really want to find out how _pleased_ Gibbs would be when two of his agents suddenly left in the middle of a case.

They solved the case by mid-afternoon – a miracle, really, considering they had had cases before that went unsolved for days, _weeks_ even.

When Gibbs barked, "Find DiNozzo, Kate," her heart had leaped and she raced to her car. She headed first to the apartment they shared, and then several places that the two of them frequented. Following her gut, she had driven to the park, and now here she was, next to him.

"What's going on?" she asked finally in a small voice, craning her neck to search his face with her big brown eyes. "Why'd you just leave like that?"

She saw him bite his lip before turning to meet her gaze. "It was…" He paused, and she noticed a frustrated glance flicker over his face as he struggled to find the words. "There were certain…_parallelisms _between the two of us and the petty officer and his fiancée."

It wasn't the clearest answer, but she instantly knew what he meant. She reached out and took his hand, trying to sort through the thoughts in her head before coming up with a reply.

Now that she thought about it, it _was_ eerie how similar their situations were – just like her and Tony, and the petty officer and his fiancée had gotten engaged only recently. They even resembled each other slightly in terms of physical features.

A shiver ran up her spine, and she understood why Tony had run – it was extremely unnerving.

"We're not going to end up like…_that_," she finished lamely.

He looked at her, his eyes filled with worry and fear – two things she rarely saw on his face. "How do you know, Kate? I mean, _come_ _on_. Things could…happen."

It was her turn to bite her lip, and she searched his face, noticing that there was still something that he wasn't saying.

"There's more to it, isn't there," she said, her tone mild.

Faint surprise flickered across his face, and he let out a shaky laugh. "You know me too well," he muttered.

He slipped his hand out of hers and shifted in his seat so he could see her better. "You think…you and me - _us_ ­– we could work?"

Kate felt her chest tighten. "Tony…what – ?"

"I know, I'm being stupid," he said, running his hand through his hair, annoyed at himself. "I'm just… Kate, this is _me _we're talking about. You and me, together… We're like a time bomb, waiting to explode. I haven't ever been in a long-term relationship, and _this_… I'd like to believe this is different, but I – " His voice broke. "I can't trust myself. I don't want to hurt you."

She didn't say anything, just looked at him tenderly. After a while she spoke up as she stared off into the distance.

"People ask me, 'Why Tony? What could you possibly see in someone like him?' I would look at them and think about how much they didn't understand. Like how yes, you can be self-absorbed sometimes, but I've never, in my entire life, met someone who cares for me as much as you do. You tell stupid, childish, sexist jokes, but you can make me laugh when all I want to do is cry. I mean, all you have to do is put your arms around me, and I feel better in an instant."

She swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat and tried to blink back the tears that were teetering at the edge of her eyelids. With a small watery smile, she continued. "The hold you have on me is amazing. I never thought I'd get married, have kids and live happily ever after. Wasn't in the cards for me, I thought. I didn't think I would ever find the person I would want to spend the rest of my life with. But then you came along, and…"

She turned back to him, meeting his gaze. A tear, and then two more, rolled down her cheek, and she took his hand in hers, never looking away from him. "Don't you get it, Tony? I want to be with you. I _love_ you. You and me…this is _right_. Don't run away from this, or expect me to run away. Because love will always lead us back to each other. And I _know_ that you know that… Otherwise, you wouldn't have given me this."

She raised her left hand. The diamond caught the bleak light that broke through the gathering storm clouds and sparkled magnificently. "Am I right?" she asked quietly.

Instead of answering, he pulled her to him and kissed her. She could feel his relief, and most importantly, his _love_, and she returned the kiss eagerly, her fingers tangled through his hair.

They broke apart, and she leaned against his shoulder. He put his right arm around her shoulders, and she automatically snaked her arm across his waist. She could feel his heart beat steadily, and she let out a contented sigh.

"So your being with me has absolutely nothing to do with my undeniably good looks or my charming smile?" he asked after a while, humor tingeing his voice.

"Nope, sorry," she fired back, smiling. "Didn't even notice the – how did you put it? – 'undeniably good looks and charming smile'."

He chuckled. "And here I was, _convinced_ that they played a huge part in getting you to be with me."

"You wish, DiNozzo," she said teasingly, and the smile on her face widened as she felt him press a kiss onto her forehead.

"I really lucked out this time, didn't I?" he murmured, running his fingers gently through her hair. "I mean, these days it's hard enough to find a beautiful woman who has even the _slightest ounce_ of intelligence. But _you_ – you're drop-dead gorgeous, unbelievably intelligent, _and _you can kick butt. Plus you can put me in my place – when necessary, of course."

"Let's just say the stars must be aligned. For _both_ of us," she said, her voice catching as tears sprung into her eyes once more.

They sat there for quite some time, occasionally exchanging sweet kisses and losing themselves in their intimacy. Soon after the wind picked up and thunder rolled in the distance.

As the first fat droplets fell on them, Tony pulled away from her reluctantly. "We better go, before we get soaked."

"That wouldn't be so bad," she said with a grin. "We seem to have a knack for staying in the rain."

He laughed. "Yeah, we do, don't we?"

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Sorry for the delay. School _seriously_ sucks. Thanks for sticking with me. Review, please - it makes me happy. Oh, and there's an epilogue after this...at least, if I ever get around to writing it. ;) 


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